Stacy and Allan hosted a book release party for Kate's book Rodrigo the Hummingbird. There were arts and crafts for the kids, and a reading of the book. Kate's dad, Patrick, translated the story into Spanish, to make the book bilingual. Here he is reading the Spanish, while Kate reads the English. Christine, Kate's mom, is showing the illustrations. And Alex, is playing musical instruments to make the sounds of the storm in the story.

All proceeds from the sales of the book go to Hogares Claret, a Colombian organization that provides for those in need. You can see a video about the organization on our page about Rodrigo:

On January 29th 2017, Kate, Stacy, and Alex Maloutas hosted an event with Joel Robinson from Naturalist For You

Coming into a new year, after the 2016 presidential elections, we decided to reconnect with our community in our new space - Kate's new house - to buoy each other and discuss what events we might like to do together in 2017. Joel led us in a discussion of some possibilities.

Alex put together an art installation on the theme of observation and the Earth. Recently returned from Standing Rock, he printed and hung photos, as well as created sculpture work, based on his experiences at the North Dakota water-protection-prayer-site. He set up stations with microscopes, a type writer, and a touch-screen embedded in the wall set to Google Earth. He also projected footage and built representational cityscapes out of scrap wood. All of this to inspire people to interact with the art, and to think about how we look at things and how things look at us.

Sunday, March 6th 2016 - Joel Robinson returned to Hive House to teach us how to process acorns into flour! He had collected acorns last Fall and dried them. He showed us how to crack them, remove the nut, pound the nut into a flour, remove the tannins, and then bake with the flour. Acorns are high in protein and other nutrients, and oak trees grow all over Southern California! There's food everywhere! Thanks Joel for another great workshop. To learn more about Joel and what he does go to: http://www.naturalist-for-you.org

Stacy organized and hosted the second annual Holiday Crafts Fair! There were great vendors and musical acts. Santa Claus came and talked with the kids. The Christmas elves made an appearance, as well. Love and merriment was in the air!

Kate hosted a feminist birthday party for Eleanor Roosevelt. Eleanor would have been 131 on October 11, 2015. Courtney Karwal played the sax, Steve Basilone read a piece he wrote about his mother, Brian Gallivan wrote and read about the women in his family, and Matthew Temple talked about raising four daughters. Emily Lacy performed live music with feminist undertones, and Stacy closed the night by stating that she was moved by the event because all the stories were personal, which underlined to her that feminism is really about humanism - about how we all relate to and support each other.

On Saturday, August 29th, Jackie Gabardy gave us a demonstration on how to make truffles, while Stacy Elaine Dacheux recounted the history of chocolate. Did you know that the Mayans used cacao beans as money? Did you know the first chocolate bar was created in 1847? Before that everyone drank their chocolate (to our knowledge). Fascinating! Stacy and Jackie also created a zine for the event, replete with recipes, and a notes page.

After the demonstration, Mollie B. Casey had us taste various aperitifs and digestives - explaining that the aperitifs contain herbs, and fruit that help relax us and open up our palate, while the digestifs contain herbs and fruit that aid in digestion.

Then, our friend Daren Sprawls rocked out with some incredible music - much of it totally original and awesome. Ladybug the dog was a huge fan.

After the Hive House Bee Event, our friend Marc Provissiero emailed Home Depot to let them know he would not be using them for his home remodel because they carry Neonicotinoid pesticides, which are the leading contributor behind bee colony collapse. Instead he'll be using Lowes, which has been actively phasing out the sale of these pesticides. Home Depot emailed him back within 24 hours and said they were aware of the issue, and were working on it. Since then, Home Depot has followed pursuit and is also taking measures to remove the products from their shelves.

Marc also asked Senator Al Franken, at a campaign event, what he plans to do about the pesticide problem. Senator Franken said he's aware it's an issue and would look into it.

You can take action, too!

As of now, True Value and Ace are still carrying these products. Our friend Dan Riley sent this updated petition to encourage True Value and Ace to remove the products from their shelves:

HERE IS A GUEST POST FROM OUR FRIEND CATHERINE OYSTER! YOU CAN READ MORE OF HER WRITING ON HER BLOG DETOX WITCH!

On Friday, June 12th 2015 the Hive House held a ladies night presentation on the menstrual cycle. Our friend Jacqueline Gabardy, who is a practicing Chinese herbalist and acupuncturist, presented a wealth of information on the menstrual cycle from both the Western and Chinese medical perspectives. Before she began, a few women shared puberty stories over potluck and wine, and it was comforting to hear about the common awkwardness and mystery we feel when it comes to our bodies.

Jacqueline's power point presentation opened with a detailed explanation of our reproductive systems from a Western perspective and then the Chinese medical perspective. After this, she related the nuances of Chinese medicine to the Western approach and how the two are similar and dissimilar.

We learned about how our cycles work: the follicular and luteal phases within a cycle, an amazing interpretation of what Qi (chi) is - function, and how our hormonal systems are linked to all systems within the body. Anything that interrupts this function or Qi - be it stress, diet, hormonal imbalance, or disease - can lead to infertility and reproductive problems.

A few amazing tidbits from Jacqueline:

- Did you know the fallopian tubes are not fixed in the body, and can even reach from one ovary to the other to pick up an egg?

- Rest and Digest or Feed and Breed are the crucial, yet often ignored counterpoints to Fight or Flight response in the nervous system. If we're stressed out or ill, our bodies use our resources to heal those immediate issues, and reproductive gets put on the back burner. Nurturing ourselves is vital to calming down daily and chronic stress so it doesn't lead to long-term reproductive health problems.

- Health, Qi, and Jing (essence) are more of a factor on reproductive health than age as a number.

- When we are young, we are born with a set amount of Jing (essence and vitality). As we age we lose Jing, but the group was happy to learn that we gain something called Shen. Shen is Spirit. Forget about teen spirit, mature women have womanly spirit!

Jacqueline also explained how she promotes using the best of both Western and Chinese medicine, and that there is a time and place to suggest IVF among other Western therapies for fertility. Acupuncture, herbs, and diet are recommended for three months before results in reproductive health are to be expected.

It was inspiring to listen to how passionate Jacqueline is about educating women on reproductive health. Looking at how our bodies work holistically rather than from solely a targeted approach was educational and helpful.

Thank you to Jacqueline! And thanks to everyone who came and participated!

On Friday, June 5th 2015 we held a blessing for the bees that included an Aztec ceremony and smudging, a lecture, a song from the perspective of a bee, a short film, and a sing along.

We recently added a third bee box to the hive so the bees can expand. In many indigenous cultures it is believed by making offerings, prayers, and even singing to the plants, animals, and elements we create a cycle of love that nourishes everything. This night was about blessing, honoring, and celebrating the bee - and welcoming them into their new box.

Thank you to Tonantzin Carmelo for her call and response prayer in Tongva. Thank you to Dan Riley for providing information about how we can help protect and care for bees. Thank you to Nicole Antebi for her beautifully crafted, stop motion animation film. And thank you to Emily Lacy for her delightful and heart warming sing along, which often featured the bee!

A telling, singing, and blessing of the bees at Hive House, with animation by Nicole Antebi, a folk concert for the bees with Emily Lacy, and a blessing of the bees ceremony led by Kate Purdy.

“It may be that the custom of telling the bees of a death originated in the idea that the bees were 'souls,' or that they were creatures who could fly up into the heavens from whence they had come. The custom is very widely spread; we find it all over Central Europe carried it, and the first allusion to it can be traced to classical times.”

Hilda M. Ransome from The Sacred Bee in Ancient Times and Folklore

Nicole Antebi created "The Telling of the Bees Telling," a short, stop motion animation about the Telling of the Bees folk phenomenon specifically for Hive House. The animation is composed of archival media, early slide specimens from the American Museum of Natural History, and hand-drawn elements with an original score by experimental composer, Melissa Grey. Kate Purdy, co-organizer of Hive House and keeper of the bees, will lead guests in a blessing of the bees and folk and electronic sound artist, Emily Lacy, will give a folk concert for the bees.

**++Hive House is a community center and a private residence in Echo Park. If you're interested in attending please RSVP to thehivehousewithstacyandkate@gmail.com, and we'll reply with a confirmation that includes the address++**

We'll be outside on the patio with a campfire, some wine, and marshmallows! Feel free to bring wine or a snack to share.

On Saturday, May 16th, Franklin Roosevelt (Stacy Elaine Dacheux) and Eleanor Roosevelt (Kate Purdy) hosted an evening of readings and music. Sarah Eggers read poetry inspired by Martha, the last passenger pigeon, and Biosphere 2. Kristy Hanson and Mike Chiaburu, as the band East Paris, played a few songs. Adrienne Walser read her piece about bodies. The Point, Sammy Tunis and Michael O'Neill played together. And Stacy Elaine Dacheux read her piece about her friend Chris and what it means to sell out. It was a lovely night of wine, toasted marshmallows, thoughtfulness, and creativity.

On Saturday, May 9th 2015 we had a cleansing, healing, and informative session with Kandonache and Maribel (both Aztec dancers and healers) - as well as with Mirabai Devi (spiritual leader). We prayed for an end to the drought, and even danced a little.

In March of 2015, Kate and Stacy presented about Hive House at Winter Shack in Brooklyn. Winter Shack is a temporary shack, made out of reclaimed wood, that Nicole Antebi and Alex Branch re-construct in the winter months in a community garden. Nicole and Alex host different events each weekend revolving around art, writing, and community.